"Yuhao, I'm sorry, I have to leave, but I still sincerely hope that you and Skydream can succeed." Ice Empress looked at Huo Yuhao, a fleeting look of apology in her eyes.
It was she who had voluntarily chosen to follow Huo Yuhao and embark on this unknown path to godhood, but now, she had to make the decision to leave.
In Ice Empress's heart, Snow Empress held too much weight.
Compared to gambling on the almost negligible chance of becoming a god with Huo Yuhao, she was more willing to trust Snow Empress.
After all, the power Snow Empress had just displayed far surpassed that of an Ultimate Douluo, profoundly shocking.
Shrek Academy, renowned throughout the continent, was so vulnerable before Snow Empress, being single-handedly and powerfully suppressed by her.
If it weren't for the fact that Snow Empress's aura still had a clear gap compared to the might emanated by the gods during the Three Gods War ten thousand years ago, Ice Empress would have thought Snow Empress had already achieved godhood.
"It's not like that, Ice Empress. I should thank you for choosing me back then. Without you, I wouldn't have reached this point today. If you want to leave, it's your freedom; I have no right to interfere."
Huo Yuhao gently shook his head, his expression tinged with regret, but more so with understanding and magnanimity.
He knew in his heart that Ice Empress had her own choices. Moreover, without Ice Empress's assistance, how could he have repeatedly triumphed in his confrontations with Dai Huabin, even forcing the latter to kneel and apologize?
"Just separate my spiritual origin. As for the soul ring and soul bone, I no longer need them." Ice Empress turned to look at Mobius. Although she instinctively felt this woman was dangerous, since Snow Empress trusted her, she chose to set aside her doubts and extend her trust.
She knew very well that her soul ring and soul bone had long been integrated with Huo Yuhao. Forcibly stripping them would be tantamount to killing Huo Yuhao.
"Alright, little mouse, be prepared!" Mobius chuckled, her smile carrying a hint of an unfathomable meaning.
Before her voice faded, green electric arcs materialized around her fingertips, which she then pointed directly at Huo Yuhao's glabella.
In that instant, externally, Ice Empress's figure transformed into countless green light specks, quickly returning to Huo Yuhao's glabella.
At the same time, Skydream Iceworm unhesitatingly and voluntarily returned to Huo Yuhao's spiritual sea.
He understood well that splitting Ice Empress's soul origin would inevitably damage Huo Yuhao's spiritual origin. He had to go all out, using his own spiritual origin to compensate for the imminent loss Huo Yuhao would suffer, helping him stabilize his spiritual space.
In Huo Yuhao's spiritual space, a shadowy, dark serpent with green markings quietly emerged. It opened its gaping maw and swallowed a verdant sphere of light in one gulp—that was Ice Empress's soul origin.
Huo Yuhao felt as if his soul had been violently torn apart by an invisible giant hand. Intense pain instantly assaulted him, and he couldn't help but let out a muffled groan. His face instantly turned ashen white, and his vision blurred, almost causing him to pass out.
Fortunately, Skydream Iceworm reacted quickly, timely using his million-year spiritual origin to rapidly mend the wounds on Huo Yuhao's spirit, thus preventing him from sustaining further harm.
Outside, Mobius gently withdrew her finger. In her palm, a verdant sphere of light had appeared—it was Ice Empress's pure soul origin.
"Bing'er!" Snow Empress looked at the sphere of soul origin, her eyes filled with worry.
"Here, take it. Find that boy within three days, or her soul origin will dissipate." Mobius said, casually tossing Ice Empress's origin towards Snow Empress.
Snow Empress quickly and carefully received Ice Empress's soul origin, then a soft white light enveloped the verdant sphere, forming a sturdy protective barrier around it.
"I understand. Thank you. I will fulfill my promise to you."
Snow Empress sincerely thanked Mobius, then glanced at Huo Yuhao, who was clutching his forehead in pain. Without further delay, she transformed into a dazzling white light and sped towards Abyss City.
She had promised Ice Empress that she wouldn't harm Huo Yuhao, so she wouldn't attack him. However, she truly couldn't control Mobius's actions.
"Heh heh!" Mobius looked at Huo Yuhao with interest. Just then, the storage soul tool on Huo Yuhao's wrist suddenly shattered without warning, and a dark red gem emitting an eerie red glow emerged from it.
This gem seemed to have a life of its own, flying to Huo Yuhao's glabella, slowly merging into it, gradually becoming one with Huo Yuhao.
"A seemingly unprocessed pseudo-Herrscher Core... Can a Herrscher persona be born in this world too? How interesting!"
Mobius looked at Huo Yuhao, who had begun to emit a dark red glow, like a curious experimental subject. Then, her figure gradually blurred and slowly dissipated, merging into space.
"Pain, self-reproach, regret, hatred... How could 'I' be so weak!" In Huo Yuhao's spiritual space, Skydream Iceworm was fully focused on restoring Huo Yuhao's damaged spiritual origin. Suddenly, a familiar voice softly echoed behind him.
Both Skydream Iceworm and Huo Yuhao's bodies trembled simultaneously because the voice was far too familiar; wasn't it Huo Yuhao's own voice?
They instinctively looked towards the source of the voice at the same time and were shocked to find another "Huo Yuhao" had appeared in the spiritual space.
This "Huo Yuhao," except for his blood-red eyes, looked almost identical to the real Huo Yuhao.
"Who are you? Why are you in my spiritual space?" Huo Yuhao's face was still ashen white. He looked solemnly at the other blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao," while Skydream Iceworm beside him was wide-eyed, filled with disbelief.
"Heh heh, who am I? You must have already sensed it, I am you!"
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao's" lips curved into a faint, elusive sneer. A powerful mental force spread out, resonating strongly with the entire spiritual space, and in the blink of an eye, he wrested control of the spiritual space from Huo Yuhao.
"Dai Huabin wanted to kill you, yet you never dared to truly retaliate against him. The academy constantly shielded him, and you could only silently endure, not daring to voice a single complaint. Snow Empress killed your teacher, and you didn't even dare to show an expression of hatred. Shrek Academy ruthlessly abandoned you, and now Ice Empress has left you, yet you still choose to silently accept it. How can 'I' be so weak!"
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao's" eyes glowed with dazzling blood-red light, like burning flames. Countless negative emotions, like a bursting flood, surged into Huo Yuhao's mind.
The familiar sensation made Huo Yuhao's heart tremble. He exclaimed in shock, "You, you're that gem!"
"Yes, and no. I was born from your negative emotions, from your escapism and weakness. I am you."
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" wasn't lying. He was indeed born with the power of that gem, but essentially, he was also Huo Yuhao himself, conceived from Huo Yuhao's deepest fears, evasiveness, and accumulated mountains of negative emotions.
"My mother's revenge, I will surely exact it. Dai Huabin, I will definitely kill him. All those who betrayed me, I will never let them go!"
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao's" tone was filled with madness and evil. After all, a being born from negative emotions could hardly harbor good intentions.
"Skydream Brother!" Huo Yuhao's face grew even paler. He shouted loudly, seeking Skydream Iceworm's help.
Skydream Iceworm understood. The ten massive golden orbs of light above the spiritual sea instantly released powerful spiritual origins, transforming into golden chains that shot towards the blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao," attempting to bind him.
"Skydream Brother, I told you, I am Huo Yuhao, I am your master."
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" smiled faintly. The next moment, the entire spiritual space trembled violently. Dark red light, like a surging tide, fiercely encroached, surrounding Skydream Iceworm.
The golden spiritual chains that had already reached the blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" instantly stalled, and the golden light clusters high above instantly dimmed.
"Skydream Brother!" Huo Yuhao exclaimed in shock. He had never imagined that Skydream Iceworm would be countered so easily. The formidable power displayed by the blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" completely exceeded his expectations.
"Sleep. When you wake up, everything will be over. My mother's revenge, and all those who humiliated and betrayed me, I will make them pay a heavy price."
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" instantly appeared before Huo Yuhao. His blood-red eyes revealed endless madness, staring intensely into Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Eye.
"Alas!" Just as Huo Yuhao was about to fall completely into slumber, an old and helpless voice softly echoed.
"Elder Yi, are you going to stop me too?" The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao's" body paused slightly, then he turned to look at Electrolux, who had appeared beside him at some unknown time.
"Little Yuhao, it seems I have harmed you!" Electrolux's eyes were filled with complex emotions. With his powerful divine sense, he could clearly determine that this blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" was not some external evil entity, but the genuine Huo Yuhao himself.
Simply put, the blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao" was Huo Yuhao's second personality.
However, this personality was not innate but was a malevolent persona cultivated by the mysterious dark red gem, nourished by the many hardships Huo Yuhao had recently endured.
Electrolux's expression was filled with guilt. If it weren't for him, Huo Yuhao wouldn't have bought that gem, nor would he have used it for cultivation, and thus this terrifying second personality wouldn't have been born.
"Elder Yi!" Huo Yuhao desperately resisted the negative emotions, preventing himself from completely falling into darkness. He looked at Electrolux with difficulty.
"Little Yuhao, I've always told you that hatred is not the entirety of your life."
Electrolux said, as divine sense power swirled around his fingertips, pointing towards the blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao."
The blood-eyed "Huo Yuhao's" lips curled into an evil smile. Blood-colored patterns began to spread from the corners of his eyes, gradually forming a blood-eye symbol on his forehead. Then, a dark red gem embedded itself in his glabella, becoming his eerie third eye.
Accompanying this change, a blood-colored mental wave spread out like a storm. Electrolux's body trembled violently, and strange blood-colored patterns began to appear on his body, which was composed of gray energy.
"So that's how it is. I was careless. Is it because I only have a wisp of divine sense left? In my prime, I wouldn't have fallen for such a trick!"
Electrolux shook his head helplessly, looking at the blood-colored patterns gradually spreading across his body.